Fera, also called shifters or the Changing Breeds, are the races of therianthropic shapeshifters of the World of Darkness. The term exclusively refers to those who undergo a proper First Change and excludes those who gain shapeshifting abilities via other means, such as the Embrace, the Chrysalis, magic or being a Stolen Moon.
In addition to the names that each of the races have historically used for themselves (i.e. 'Garou', 'Ajaba', 'Corax', etc.), different animal shapeshifting races are distinguished (usually by outsiders) by more neutral terms simply describing the animal to which they share a form. These terms ("were(animal)" or sometimes "(animal)-shifter") also encompass shapeshifters of the appropriate animal who do not qualify as true Fera, as listed above.